Pages

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Twist of Fate

Fate is my invisible partner. The moment she invited me to dance with her, I knew everything was going to change. Her twists and turns are out of this world. Rarely are my feet on the ground; my head won't stop spinning. I tried to hide from her, afraid she would lure me out my cave. She did.

I can't explain her ways. She is mysterious. She has connections. She played a role introducing me to my future wife who once lived only a couple of football fields away even though we never met. Fate followed me around and arranged a set of events that forever changed my destiny. I thought I was safe when Fate left me alone for the next two decades of my life, living comfortably in a small town outside San Diego and raising a family with the love of my life. I was happy in my cave. Then, Fate knocked on my door. I knew it was her. Her knock is spellbinding. I prayed she would go away and find a new dance partner. She didn't.

My wife heard her quiet tapping on our front door and invited her in. Before I could say one word, Fate was sitting with us at the dinner table and we were making plans to sell everything and move to Iowa. Even my children were hypnotized by Fate. She was the real estate agent selling dreams and they were the eager buyers. Then Fate gazed into my eyes and asked, "are you ready to dance?"

In the blink of an eye, escrow closed on our 3,100 square foot cave and most of our possessions were sold at garage sales. Fate arranged for a temporary place for us to live in our new home state. Some friends offered to let us stay in their home while they escaped to a warmer climate in Arizona. In an odd twist of fate, most of our early Iowa days were in the 70º range while our friends dealt with cold weather in the Valley of the Sun.

Soon, our family will be celebrating our one year anniversary in Iowa. I don't have any plans to stop dancing with Fate. She is an excellent dance partner. If you ever hear her knocking on your door, my recommendation is to let her in. Be prepared to dance. Your life will never be the same.